From humble beginnings in a rural French Canadian home town, Celine Dion has risen to international superstardom like a shooting star. Celine has been called the premier contemporary pop vocalist of the Nineties. She has earned music industry accolades from around the world: Grammy Awards in the US,Juno and Felix Awards in Canada, and World Music Awards in Europe. The entire world has seen Celine Dion literally transform herself from a gifted pre-adolescent into an international superstar.
Born in Charlemagne (a small town 30 miles east of Montreal,
Quebec, Canada), Celine is the youngest of 14 children of a highly musical family. Her parents, both musicians, operated a small club,and on weekends, the entire family performed and entertained the local population. From the tender age of 5, Celine sang with her siblings and quickly acquired the ability of performing live. At the age of twelve, together with her mother and one of her brothers, Celine composed a French song which would forever alter the course of her life.
The demo tape containing the song was brought to the attention of Rene Angelil, a well respected personal manager. In January, 1981, Rene was so taken by the voice of the young Celine, that he became determined to make her an internationally known talent - he even mortgaged his house to finance the recording of Celine's debut album!
Celine began to receive recognition for her talent in 1982, winning the Gold Medal at the Yamaha World Song Festival in Tokyo, along with the coveted Musician's Award for Top Performer. In 1983, she became the first Canadian ever to receive a Gold Record in France.
The streak of recognition had begun.
By 1988, Celine had established a strong name for herself in her
native province of Quebec, where she was enjoying superstar
status, receiving numerous Felix Awards and racking up platinum
albums. That same year, Celine won the prestigious Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin Ireland, where she performed live before a
television audience of 600 million viewers throughout Europe, the
USSR, the Middle-East, Japan, and Australia.
Celine's international breakthrough came when
she recorded the title track for the soundtrack to
the animated Disney hit movie 'Beauty and the Beast.' The song went to number one and garnered an Academy Award and a Grammy Award. Beauty and the Beast
formed the cornerstone for Celine's second English language album, called simply 'Celine Dion.' That album produced four more hit singles including "Love Can Move Mountains," "Water From The Moon," "If You Asked Me To" and "Did You Give Enough Love." In
Canada, the album went six times platinum and set the stage for
an incredible streak of Juno Awards.
But it was with the release of 'The Colour Of My Love' that Celine fulfilled her promise as one of the foremost pop artists of the era. Again, it included a film theme - she duetted
with the British singer Clive Griffin on the much-loved classic "When I Fall In Love," which appeared on the soundtrack of the box-office triumph 'Sleepless In Seattle.' Again it included a cover version - her marvelous interpretation of Jennifer Rush's 1985 hit "The Power Of Love." And again it proved that Celine's powerful voice and dramatic style
are equally at home on tender ballads ("The Colour Of My Love")
and amid attacking club rhythms ("Misled.") Needless to say, the
album sold incredibly in Canada.
At this time, the Celine juggernaut started rolling at a momentous pace in the UK. British fans took extremely well to "Think Twice," a ballad on 'The Colour Of My Love'. For five consecutive weeks, the song and album stood on top of the respective British charts, an achievement not replicated since 1965 and the heyday of The Beatles. "Think Twice" remained at number one for two more
weeks, surpassing the magic million mark to become only the
fourth million-selling single ever in the UK by a female artist.
And with her 'D'eux' album, Celine achieved what
everyone thought was impossible - introduced French music to the upper reaches of the British charts. The world had truly discovered Celine Dion.
Blessed with one of popular music's truly great voices, she has
crossed all barriers - even that of language - with her electrifying series of international hits. With her breakneck pace of recording, video shoots, touring and appearing on TV shows and awards specials, it seems like Celine has time for little else. Not the case when it comes to an important cause. Celine has used her talents to further cause of the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. In fact, one of Celine's most emotional songs ("Vole," from the 'D'eux' album, later translated into English as the song Fly, which appears
on the 'Falling Into You' album) is a memorial to her niece, Karine, who was taken from her by this disease.
Released in March 1996, 'Falling Into You' became the best-selling album released that year; topped
the charts in 11 countries, and was voted Album of the Year and Best Pop Album in the 39th annual Grammy Awards. The album, to date, has sold more than 25 million copies world wide.
'Let's Talk About Love' is the follow-up to her double
Grammy Award-winning album. Recorded in London, New York and Los Angeles, 'Let's Talk About Love' features a host of special guests including some of popular music's greatest
vocalists, songwriters, and producers.
With each new release, Celine has managed to top her previous
successes and, along the way, has become one of the brightest
stars in the world of popular music. Who would have imagined
that Quebec's best kept secret could have conquered the world
the way she has?
Looking back now, we should have known it all along.
-Sony Records Online
Celine's New Album - 'S'il suffisait d'aimer'
'S'il suffisait d'aimer' is Celine's upcoming new album, her fourth french-language studio release. This project reunites Celine and Jean Jacques Goldman, who last worked together on 'D'eux' (also known as 'The French Album') which sold just under 6 million units worldwide.
"S’il suffisait d’aimer" (the song) was written by Jean Jacques
Goldman with Erick Benzi (who contributed two songs to the
album) and will be in Canadian stores on September 15, 1998. It will be in stores in America on October 13, 1998. The
first single will be "Zora Sourit."
-Sony Records Online